Seamless laminated basketball

ABSTRACT

A seamless laminated basketball has a carcass and multiple outer covers attached to an outer surface of the carcass. Each outer cover has a thin portion formed around a peripheral edge of the outer cover and seamlessly connected to the thin portions of adjacent outer covers. As widths of the thin portions of the outer covers change, widths of recessed ball channels of the seamless laminated basketball change accordingly. Molds for manufacturing the carcass do not have to be remade or changed. Therefore, the seamless laminated basketball has simplified manufacturing processes and lowered manufacturing cost. Moreover, the outer covers are seamlessly connected to one another, which provides the laminated basketball an intact appearance. Furthermore, the connected outer covers prevent each other from peeling away from the carcass.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a laminated basketball, especially to a seamless laminated basketball.

2. Description of the Prior Art(s)

With reference to FIGS. 10, 11A and 11B, a conventional laminated basketball comprises a carcass 51 having multiple strips 52 formed on an outer surface of the carcass 51, and multiple outer covers 53 disposed between the strips 52 and attached to the outer surface of the carcass 51. The strips 52 are recessed below the outer cover 53 such that multiple ball channels are defined above the strips 52.

With reference to FIG. 12, another conventional laminated basketball, as disclosed in “An Inflatable Game Ball With Lain-In Channel Or Logo,” U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,752, has a carcass 41, multiple outer covers 42 and multiple strips 44. The carcass 41 has multiple grooves 43 formed in an outer surface of the carcass 41. The outer covers 42 are attached to an outer surface of the carcass 41. Gaps between the outer covers 42 correspond to the grooves 43. The strips 44 are securely mounted in the grooves 43, are disposed between the outer covers 42 and are recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers 42 such that multiple ball channels are defined above the strips 44.

However, since each mold for manufacturing the carcass 51, 41 has elongated portions with fixed widths for forming the strips 52 or the grooves 43 of the carcass 51, 41, as widths of the ball channels of the conventional laminated basketballs change, the molds for manufacturing the carcasses 51, 41 have to be remade or changed accordingly. Moreover, whenever the widths of the ball channels change, multiple set of the molds have to be prepared for the purpose of mass production on the conventional laminated ball, which causes inconvenient manufacturing processes and increased manufacturing cost. Moreover, since the outer covers 53, 42 are independently attached to the outer surface of the carcass 51, 41, the outer covers 53, 42 have a tendency to peel away from the carcass 51, 41. Furthermore, the grooves 43 cause the conventional laminated basketball to have a non-integrated appearance.

To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a seamless laminated basketball to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The main objective of the present invention is to provide a seamless laminated basketball. To achieve the foregoing objective, the seamless laminated basketball has a carcass and multiple outer covers. The outer covers are attached to an outer surface of the carcass. Each outer cover has a thin portion formed around a peripheral edge of the outer cover and seamlessly connected to the thin portions of adjacent outer covers.

The above-mentioned carcass may have multiple grooves formed in an outer surface of the carcass. The above-mentioned thin portion of each outer cover may be mounted in and disposed along corresponding grooves of the carcass.

The above-mentioned outer surface of the carcass may be smooth.

The above-mentioned peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers may abut each other.

The above-mentioned thin portions of every two adjacent outer covers may overlap.

The above-mentioned thin portions of the outer covers may be coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils to form ball channels.

The above-mentioned seamless laminated basketball may further have multiple strips mounted on the thin portions of the outer covers and recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers to form the ball channels.

The above-mentioned strips may be rubber strips or composite leather strips.

As widths of the thin portions of the outer covers change, widths of the recessed ball channels of the seamless laminated basketball change accordingly. Therefore, the widths of the ball channels can be changed at manufacturer's choice. Molds for manufacturing the carcass do not have to be remade or changed. Therefore, the seamless laminated basketball has simplified manufacturing processes and lowered manufacturing cost. Moreover, the outer covers are seamlessly connected to one another, which provides the laminated basketball an intact appearance and the connected outer covers prevent each other from peeling away from the carcass.

Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of the seamless laminated basketball in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a second embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a third embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a fourth embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a fifth embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a sixth embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of a seventh embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged cross-sectional perspective view of an eighth embodiment of a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional laminated basketball in accordance with the prior art; and

FIG. 11A is an enlarged cross-sectional side view of a carcass of the laminated basketball in FIG. 10;

FIG. 11B is an enlarged cross-sectional side view of the laminated basketball in FIG. 10; and

FIG. 12 is an enlarged cross-sectional side view of another conventional laminated basketball in accordance with the prior art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIG. 1 a seamless laminated basketball in accordance with the present invention comprises a carcass 10 and multiple outer covers 20.

With further reference to FIG. 2, the carcass 10 has an outer surface and multiple grooves 11. The grooves 11 are formed in the outer surface of the carcass 10.

The outer covers 20 are attached to the outer surface of the carcass 10. Each outer cover 20 has an inner surface, an outer surface, a peripheral edge and a thin portion 21. The thin portion 21 is thinned from the inner surface of the outer cover 20, is formed around the peripheral edge of the outer cover 20, is pressed to be mounted in and disposed along corresponding grooves 11 of the carcass 10, is seamlessly connected to the thin portions 21 of adjacent outer covers 20 to cover the carcass 10, and is recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers 20 to form ball channels above the thin portion 21.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, in a first preferred embodiment, the peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers 20 abut each other. The thin portions 21 of the two adjacent outer covers 20 are flush with each other and are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils to mark the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball for the convenience of gripping the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 3, in a second preferred embodiment, the thin portions 21A of every two adjacent outer covers 20A overlap and are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils to mark the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 4, in a third preferred embodiment, the peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers 20 abut each other. The thin portions 21 of the two adjacent outer covers 20 are flush with each other. The seamless laminated basketball further has multiple strips 30. The strips 30 may be rubber strips or composite leather strips, are mounted on the thin portions 21 of the outer covers 20, are recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers 20 for marking the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 5, in a fourth preferred embodiment, the thin portions 21A of every two adjacent outer covers 20A overlap. The strips 30 are mounted on the thin portions 21A of the outer covers 20A, are recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers 20A for marking the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 6, in a fifth preferred embodiment, the groove of the carcass 10A is omitted and thus, the outer surface of the carcass 10A is smooth. The peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers 20 abut each other. The thin portions 21 of the two adjacent outer covers 20 are flush with each other and are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils to mark the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 7, in a sixth preferred embodiment, the groove of the carcass 10A is omitted and thus, the outer surface of the carcass 10A is smooth. The thin portions 21A of every two adjacent outer covers 20A overlap and are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils to mark the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 8, in a seventh preferred embodiment, the groove of the carcass 10A is omitted and thus, the outer surface of the carcass 10A is smooth. The peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers 20 abut each other. The thin portions 21 of the two adjacent outer covers 20 are flush with each other. The seamless laminated basketball further has multiple strips 30. The strips 30 may be rubber strips or composite leather strips, are mounted on the thin portions 21 of the outer covers 20, are recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers 20 for marking the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

With reference to FIG. 9, in an eighth preferred embodiment, the groove of the carcass 10A is omitted and thus, the outer surface of the carcass 10A is smooth. The thin portions 21A of every two adjacent outer covers 20A overlap. The strips 30 are mounted on the thin portions 21A of the outer covers 20A, are recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers 20A for marking the recessed ball channels on the seamless laminated basketball.

The seamless laminated basketball has the following advantages. As widths of the thin portions 21, 21A of the outer covers 20, 20A change, widths of the recessed ball channels of the seamless laminated basketball change accordingly. The width of the ball channels can be changed at manufacturer's choice. The grooves 11 of the carcass 10 can be kept in a uniform size, and molds for manufacturing the carcass 10, 10A do not have to be remade or changed. Therefore, the seamless laminated basketball has simplified manufacturing processes and lowered manufacturing cost. Moreover, the outer covers 20, 20A are seamlessly connected to one another, which provides the laminated basketball an intact appearance. Furthermore, the connected outer covers 20, 20A prevent each other from peeling away from the carcass 10, 10A.

Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A seamless laminated basketball comprising a carcass; and multiple outer covers attached to an outer surface of the carcass, and each outer cover having a thin portion formed around a peripheral edge of the outer cover, seamlessly connected to the thin portions of adjacent outer covers to cover the carcass and recessed below the outer surfaces of the outer covers to form ball channels above the thin portion.
 2. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 1, wherein the carcass has multiple grooves formed in an outer surface of the carcass; and the thin portion of each outer cover is mounted in and is disposed along corresponding grooves of the carcass.
 3. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 1, wherein an outer surface of the carcass is smooth.
 4. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 2, wherein the peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers abut each other.
 5. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 3, wherein the peripheral edges of every two adjacent outer covers abut each other.
 6. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 2, wherein the thin portions of every two adjacent outer covers overlap.
 7. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 3, wherein the thin portions of every two adjacent outer covers overlap.
 8. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 4, wherein the thin portions of the outer covers are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils.
 9. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 5, wherein the thin portions of the outer covers are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils.
 10. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 6, wherein the thin portions of the outer covers are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils.
 11. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 7, wherein the thin portions of the outer covers are coated or transfer-printed with colored materials or foils.
 12. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 4 further having multiple strips mounted on the thin portions of the outer covers and recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers to form the ball channels.
 13. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 5 further having multiple strips mounted on the thin portions of the outer covers and recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers to form the ball channels.
 14. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 6 further having multiple strips mounted on the thin portions of the outer covers and recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers to form the ball channels.
 15. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 7 further having multiple strips mounted on the thin portions of the outer covers and recessed below outer surfaces of the outer covers to form the ball channels.
 16. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 12, wherein the strips are rubber strips or composite leather strips.
 17. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 13, wherein the strips are rubber strips or composite leather strips.
 18. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 14, wherein the strips are rubber strips or composite leather strips.
 19. The seamless laminated basketball as claimed in claim 15, wherein the strips are rubber strips or composite leather strips. 